Tony Blair has said the government will stay its course despite the current media "storm" surrounding him.

Addressing Labour's national policy forum in London, he alluded to the cash-for-honours inquiry controversy.

The prime minister said "it can be hard to stay calm", but "it should not change our course or our confidence".

Mr Blair has also appealed for voters he met during the 1997 election campaign to get in touch with their experiences over the last decade.

The prime minister wants people who spoke to him to post their stories on the Labour Party website.

During his final months in Downing Street, Mr Blair is asking them to let him know how things have improved under Labour, as well as highlighting where challenges remain.

He will then invite some to visit him at No.10 and drop in on others during regional visits over the next couple of months.

You get used to the periodic storms and I don't for a moment, incidentally, underestimate the volume of this one

Tony BlairPrime minister

Meanwhile, in London, the prime minister defended his party's record while in government, stressing that Labour had the best policies of the political parties.

And he insisted that the next general election would be decided by policies rather than current controversies, and appealed for party activists to keep faith with the New Labour agenda.

Mr Blair told his audience: "In politics at the top you get used to the periodic storms and I don't for a moment, incidentally, underestimate the volume of this one and whilst you and perhaps more accurately me are in the eye of it.

"It can be hard to stay calm as it rages, but however buffeted, it should not change our course or our confidence."

The prime minister added: "I have complete confidence in what we have achieved in the last 10 years and what we can achieve in the next".